Anheuser-Busch Purchases Two Craft Breweries

Anheuser-Busch Purchases Two Craft Breweries

Washington and Oregon rank first and second respectively in US production of hops– the key ingredient in beer– and are responsible for about 90 percent of the nation’s hop production. There are many across the West that enjoy a good beer. For those craft beer fans, you need to be aware of the recent purchases of two Pacific Northwest craft breweries in the past several months.
Anheuser-Busch is the U.S. arm of Anheuser-Busch InBev S.A.— a Belgian company that is the world’s largest brewer. The company makes Budweiser and Bud Lite. Field Reporter Greg Martin shares mores details
Martin: “According to an Associate Press article, Anheauser-Busch is buying Seattle’s Elysian Brewing Company — which will expand its craft brewing companies. In November, Anheauser-Busch announced it bought 10 Barrel Brewing of Oregon. It has been reported that barrel sales of some of their purchased craft brews have been dramatically slashed in prices since changing hands. How will this affect our region’s craft brewery companies moving forward?”
It appears that Anheauser-Busch is battling the soft national beer sales — which declined 1.9 percent in 2013 — by buying up increasingly popular craft breweries. Craft beer sales rose 17 percent during that same time period according to the Brewers Association.
InBev already has a 1/3 share in a Northwest Group that produces Red Hook, Widmer and Kona beers.
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